Kiss of Osiris

Chapter Eleven

Why am I crying? 

She was in disbelief. Then she realized she would have been pulled in eventually as well. Al distracted her so he could pull away to save her. 

She strained her eyes in the darkness trying to see something. Nothing. Well, she'd be damned if she just gave up now. She thought about jumping in but she probably would die. She wasn't as hardy as those other two. They were so close! The treasure was just a floor or two down! Determined, she set out to find a way to find Al and the treasure. Hopefully, the skinchanger was dead. After an hour or so she found a flight of stairs to where she thought they had landed. 

There! She saw black blood and blue blood. She had picked up an Egyptian double ax she found from an ancient armory in one of the rooms and she held it tight. She heard a shout and the sound of fighting. She ran towards it and saw Al and the skinchanger in the middle of combat. She ran forward and give it and huge slash from the ax. 

Yes! The creature turned around in the blink of an eye and backhanded her so hard her teeth chattered. She slid across the room. Ow. Mighta' lost a tooth. That made Al angry he clenched the creature and headbutted it repeatedly. They threw each other through a wall. Rubbing her face, Evee got up and followed them. They were both getting up in a daze when she saw something that made her eyes lit up with wonder. 

Whoa! At the far end of the room. She raised her torch and saw gold! Treasures and other precious artifacts! An archaeologist's wet dream! Al must be over the moon. And there in the center was a glorious staff. It was solid gold and at the top was a blue gem that surrounded by cherub wings. The gem glowed with a cool otherworldly ambiance. Putting on gloves he had in a pocket Al walked over and gingerly picked it up.

At long last. The Staff of Osiris. Here it was all long. Almost forgetting his nigh mortal wounds Al cracked a smile. They had done it! Joy washed over him in awesome waves. But his joy was short lived. He looked up and saw the skinchanger had Evee hostage. The thing's face morphed into that of a mans. And it spoke. 

"Well done. So you've found the Staff. Congratulations." They both looked at it shocked. 

"What did you think I was only a mindless creature? No, I am far older than both of you. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lucifys. And Alcinous, we have been previously acquainted. But I'll get to that more in a moment. Wow, where to begin. Yes, I am a skinchanger, a polymorph. But I am so much more than that."

"I have been watching you, Alcinous, for a very long time. Have you ever wondered what happened to your father? You remember glimpses yes? He would visit from time to time. Scar on the bottom cheek, balding, a smile that would warm the coldest heart? Like this?" For a moment his face changed to that of fifty-something Bahamian man with kind eyes and a charismatic smile.

Al's eyes bulged and his grip on the Staff tightened. 

"What?' his voice was tremulous. 

Lucifys's face went back to normal. "Relax, I am not your father."

"But I did kill him."

Al took a step forward, rage in his face. "Let me explain everything then you can do what you must. Yes, I killed him it was necessary. Then I took his place. His sacrifice was not in vain. You see, it was mostly me who was there when your "father" visited. Your father was sick and would have died anyway when you were very young, perhaps too young to remember anything."

"So in a way, it was actually good, since you had a "father" who would come to visit you. Eventually, your real father would have died from his sickness. But you see, you were made for a specific purpose. You are the salvation. Human beings are a scourge on this planet."

"Evil, petty, insects who are destroying the planet, and themselves. You are beautiful. You and your kind will put an end to this disease. It was I who attacked you and your dog that day, I who swooped down from the heavens and gave you the gift of the kiss of Osiris. It was I who made you the savior and messiah that you will one day become." Al looked at him incredulously, as did Evee. 

Whoa.